Set amidst a harsh and stunning landscape, Alice Springs has struggled against the odds and remained in existence, having become a bustling town at the base of the famous and breathtaking MacDonnell Ranges. Aboriginal people are believed to have inhabited the surrounding land for possibly as long as 60,000 years.

Their unique insights and knowledge of the land can be touched upon on one of many Aboriginal tours. Despite modern times and pressures to change, their brand of desert arts and crafts are still very much alive, providing a link to numerous traditions of their ancestors.

The history of the Alice Springs is very much intertwined with that of the Overland Telegraph Line. It was back in 1870 that Overland Telegraph surveyor W.W. Mills came upon the waterhole around which a year later the Alice Springs Telegraph Station was established.

The town's name was derived from the name of the wife of the South Australian Postmaster General who was in charge of the construction of the Overland Telegraph. The Springs part of the name comes from the spring which exists north of the town, quite close to the Alice Springs Telegraph Station.

In 1872 station managers on their way to take over the operation of the stations at Barrow Creek, Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, found the trip very difficult in the harsh environment. These areas were very inaccessible in those days. One of the managers died of thirst and the remaining two only survived because they chose to turn back and resorted to drinking the blood of their horses to keep alive.

In 1888 the town of Stuart began to appear and grow. Its name was derived from the famous explorer John McDouall Stuart and this remained the name of the town until 1933. In that year the Alice Springs Telegraph Station closed down and the town took on the name of Alice Springs.

As the goldfields developed and the number of pastoralists increased, this added to the incentive to expand the town. It outgrew its town image, becoming a bustling city and improved roads (Stuart Highway was bituminised) and rail links (1929 saw the completion of the rail line from Adelaide), plus the setting up by E.J. Connell of an Alice Springs based airline, opened up the region and marked a period of transformation, during which tourism became a key factor.

Alice was the military base and administrative headquarters for the Northern Territory during the second World War, indeed General Douglas MacArthur, the American General, was based here for some time


The Alice Springs area has a great variety of attractions, from the natural beauty of the MacDonnell Ranges to the spectacle of the Henley-On-Todd Regatta !

Explore the following links to learn more about the many ways to spend your time in 'The Alice'.

Natural Attractions
Historic Attractions
Museums
Arts and Crafts
Other Attractions

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